Monday, December 8, 2008

I had an "ah ha!" moment over the weekend when I figured out how I could make a quick little Christmas wallhanging to hang at my desk at work. I thought I'd share with you the steps to make this little guy or something similar in case you'd like to adapt it for a project of your own.

Santa was a little quilt-as-you-go project using wool. I don't do much fusible applique, but I'm sure you could do the same thing with fusible or a combination of both--I like the dimension the wool gives it.

First, I picked one block pattern from a larger applique pattern I liked. I figured out how large the applique block would be and then I added 6" to the length and width of the block to allow room for a 3" border. I then cut my backing and batting to that finished size or a little larger so it could be trimmed later.

I cut the background for the applique block to the correct size and centered it on the batting/backing. I used quilt pins to secure the layers.

I cut the wool pieces and laid them out to check placement.

Once I liked where everything was, I repinned the layers with the wool. (Note--for the face, I used regular cotton and fused it in the correct position before pinning the rest.)

Next, I sewed down all the wool pieces, using thread to match the wool so the stitching didn't stand out.

And here's the basic Santa with the pieces all sewn in place.

Next, I needed to add the borders. Because I couldn't trim up the piece since it was already layered, I drew pencil lines where I'd normally have cut. I could then use the pencil line to line up with the raw edge of the border strips. I know the photo's a little "fuzzy" but I wanted to give you an idea of what I'm talking about.

The first set of borders were cut 3" by the width of the center block. With "good" side of the fabric down, I lined the edge of the border strip up with the pencil line and sewed the seam, sewing through all layers. I did the same with the opposite border, and I pressed them "open."

I then measured the new length of the block with the borders added and cut the next two border strips. I sewed them as I did the others and pressed them back. Now I had my wallhanging--the center block with borders all around.

Here's what the quilting on the back looked like at that point.

Next, I decided to add a little extra quilting for texture.

After that, I just trimmed up the borders and bound the quilt. After the addition of a couple holly leaves in the corner and some buttons for berries and eyes, the project was done!

I hope you enjoyed your weekend as much as I did mine! Thanks for stopping in to visit.

ADDENDUM--NOVEMBER 30, 2011: The pattern I used for this applique is a Country Faces pattern called Christmas Sampler. You can find it HERE--really a cute design.

This is the cutest Santa. I think I may have to make this one too. What a great look. I really like that you made it a quilt as you go project. I will have to get caught up on posting today because you will die at what's been going on around here. Have something important to do this morning but hope to get caught up by this afternoon. Back to the grind.

Oh Kim you did it again. I just love your quick little tutorial. Can a person use felt instead of Wool and get the same effect? My wool allergy and using my hands would make for a painful experience. Thanks for the inspiration.

Where on your desk are you going to display this santa of wonder? Well done, amazing and I feel so good looking at your work.You have started me looking over all the wool around my home in a different way. ie dragging back out of a donation bags that I keep going, and for items still around the house, "Oh, that might look interesting felted."

Sung to that country western tune, "I see the li-i-ght. I see the li-i-ght."

About Me

I'm a quilter living in Northern California. I sew and design quilts. During the day, I'm a legal secretary, but at night, I can usually be found in the Sweat Shop, engaged in the sport of X-treme quilting! I'm married and have two adult kids, Soccer Son and the Wild Child, and a daughter-in-law, the Lovely Wife. I try not to take myself too seriously and often write tongue-in-cheek--if you think I might be joking, I probably am!

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IT'S ABOUT TIME!

It's 2013. YIKES! It's 2014! And what's my plan for the year? More of the same? Let's see what I said last year: "Before 2012 ended, several ongoing projects were set aside. Okay, who am I kidding? I'm sure I could say the same thing for every year since 2000! So, in 2013, I'm going to try to get back to many of the 2012 projects and some that were begun even earlier, and get them done. I'll keep track of my progress, in words and photos, here in my side bar." Yep, one year wasn't enough--I think we'll roll it on into 2014!

2014 BOM

A WORD ABOUT TUTORIALS

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